Demonic Resurrection leads the nomination race at RSMA 2015

Demonic Resurrection’s Sahil Makhija at Rolling Stone Metal Awards 2010

Demonic Resurrection leads the nominations race for the 2015 Rolling Stone Metal Awards (RSMA) to be held in Mumbai this month. With nods in eight categories for their new album The Demon King, they just about edged out local rivals Scribe, who have received seven nominations for their album Hail Mogambo. Other  names that feature prominently on the list include the little known Shillong experimental metal band Aberrant, with six nominations, and Delhi prog metalcore band Colossal Figures, who have been nominated in five categories.

Scribe at RSMA 2013 | Photo: Prashin Jagger

India’s most prestigious awards show for  metal music, the sixth edition of RSMA got even bigger  in 2015 with  build-up gigs over the last few months  in Jaipur, Delhi and Bengaluru,  featuring the likes of  Undying Inc, Threinody, The Down Troddence, Chaos and Sceptre. This year also marks another important development, with Casio G-Shock, the iconic watch preferred by many a metaller, coming on board as the presenting sponsor.

The growing interest in RSMA, both online and the show reflects the rising popularity of metal as a music genre, and the fast evolving quality of local music and musicians.

The Down Troddence at the RSMA 2015 Bengaluru pre-gig | Photo Courtesy: Abrahams’s Creations – Ashish Varughese Abraham

Past winners at RSMA have included the biggest names in the Indian metal scene including Demonic Resurrection, Bhayanak Maut, Scribe, Zygnema, The Down Troddence, Noiseware, Undying Inc, Eccentric Pendulum and Skyharbor. The categories of awards include Best Band, Best Song, Best Album, Best Guitarist, Best Bassist, Best Vocalist, Best Keyboardist, Best Emerging Artist and Best Album artwork. The winners are chosen by a combination of online polling and jury poll.

SikTh guitarist Dan Weller. Photo: Jake Owens

Launched in 2010, RSMA is rapidly gaining international recognition as well, as is evident in the lineup of international metal greats who participate in the award process as members of the jury, year after year.  This year’s jury members include  Dan Weller, guitarist and producer for  SikTh;   Tim ”˜Ripper Owens’, former vocalist for Judas Priest and Iced Earth;  Biff Byford, vocalist for the big English  band Saxon; Travis Ryan, vocalist for the death metal band Cattle Decapitation;  and Brett Bamberger, bassist for the technical death metal band Revocation.

As is well known in the metal community, RSMA recognizes and honors the best and the most promising talent every year. The awards night also offers a prestigious platform for the bands, both new and established, to perform and meet their fans. Four bands take stage at this year’s edition including Pune-based metallers Abraxas, Mumbai prog metal band The Minerva Conduct, Delhi prog metal band Colossal Figures and Bengaluru thrash metallers Inner Sanctum.

Public voting in three categories ”“ Best Band, Best Album and Best Song ”“ is open until March 20th.

While Casio G-Shock is the presenting sponsor, associate sponsors include Zippo and Gibson Guitars. This year, we also welcome Pepsi MTV Indies, the year-old channel for alternative music, as a partner for the event.

Rolling Stone Metal Awards 2015 will be held on March 22^nd at Blue Frog. Entry: Rs 200/-